The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1887-04-22

- found that me robberIee were co.,
mitted between Pittsburgh and pcnnisons
that out OF eighty crews. sevcnty-nve
were practiaing great game OF robbery
We were badly stalled - nrst By the TACT
thar the seals on the cars
were generally found intact win
they reached Columbus on their Way
westward. Then commenced . syssem o.
espionage on every mile OF siding -
tween here and Dennison Day and night
the watch continued. Meanwhile,
marked and dccoy goods wore used. We
found that local freight was generally
untouched; that the rcbberles when
committed on Union Line shipments.
Well and good. One dark night one o.
our brightest men stumbled against tho
mvsserv Of the seals and the
method by which thcy were sue
ccssfully tempered with Concealed
behind car, he saw the freight crew
come 10 Union Line car. The wire was
pulled out Of the seal, the door was
thrown open and the car entered. In
short time the men emerged, carving
lot OF plumber They made on 70 the
caboose, and the conductor pulled back the
door, ran tho wire through the seal. where
II had been pulled out, and with board
struck II = blow. The wire went back
10 its place. the blow united the SOFT
lead again without destroying the
lettering on either side and the seal was
apparently untouched saw one OF these,
and IL was only BY the closest scrutiny
that . person could detect the sign
Of tampcring with It. All this resng
made clear, our course was much
easier. The individuals OF these crews
were then each Of them tracked down,
aud may say here, that 50 closely were
the stolen goods located that out OF all tho
arrests made last night and this morn
ing there was not one man but
had stolen stun ei Their upon him or in his
room. OF course YOU understand that our
methods used in ascertaining all this can
not be made public. Sufice Il 70 say,
that we have our hands on every thievish
employe, and we are in easy reach OF
those who arc not arrested. When l
say We, mean OF course, Mr.. Gilkerson
Hrst, a. to him belongs the
exclusive credit OF the rich haul that
filled the drag net can give few illus
trations Of the spirit Of these employees.
In one case, just lately, the pursuit was
50 hot that twenty-five boxes OF hne
cigars were hastily burned in . caboose
stove In another case Zip" resulted
in two bolts OF fine silk being
thrown from caboose into the
Monongahcla river while crossing
the Panhandle bridge. In another
instance . crew broke open car and
found Il full OF organs One Of the men
was so enragcd by finding nothing OF the
stealable kind that he thrust an iron bar
into an organ and ruined il. We have
evidence that freight conductor broke
Into car, opened piano and sat and
played il all night, stopping at midnight
to eat his supper on the polished
top. The same fellow was humping a
piano in a dive last night when captured.
Another brakeman. who lives on Wylie
avenue. stole bolt Of cloth. had sui;
made for himself and gave the cloth for
two othc. suits 70 two Of his friends
Another man has become an expert on
stolen ACCORDION In all my ex
pcrience OF twenty-nine years ! never
saw such taste for miscellaneous steal.
ing. Every thing except cof3n and Q
blacksmith's anvil has been stolen and
made use Of. Some Of our detectives rs
sured me this morning that not man was
arrested but had from half dcDen 20 :
dozen pairs OF clean socks Of the finest
quality and alarge sssortnen: Of shirts
| Of all kinds"